10/23/2026
We're proud to continue our National Principal's Month series with a quick Q&A with West Forest Intermediate School principal, Mr. Chris Hames!
Q: What inspired you to enter education, and how did you progress to your role as principal?
A: "I think my high school coaches were the reason. I had great relationships with them, saw what they did, saw the impact they had on me and others, and I thought I would really enjoy doing that. So that's kind of why I started. Once I was teaching and coaching, I was always at every event to build those relationships. I saw when you got into administration, you could have a bigger impact over a different group of kids."
Q: What's something you're especially proud of at West Forest this year?
A: "Our teachers are really great. I've worked a lot of places, but here, I walked into a situation where they really know what they're doing. They care about our kids, they care about our families. They've had some things in place for a long time. It's not anything I've done, for sure. It's just the West Forest way, and I'm getting indoctrinated into that.
Q: What is something you want the Opelika community to know about the work prinicpals do every day?
A: "I just want them to know that we're people, too. We're parents, too. We know what's being entrusted to us, who we're responsible for, and how much we care about their kids, how much our teachers care about their kids. That's at the front of every conversation we have - meetings with staff, meetings with each other, meetings with parents. We're here to serve our families as best as we know how to do it."
